Three weeks ago Tuesday, we welcomed a new little boy into the Dekker family!
James Robert Dekker arrived almost two weeks late, and our family was more than ready to meet him!
Although his labor and delivery were nice and fast like the other 2 kids, there were SO many things that were very, very different the 3rd time around.
For starters, with the other 2 kids, I never had even 1 “real” contraction until the morning of the day they were born. With both Nora and Simon, I woke up, felt the contractions, and told Dave we would have a baby that day. Both times I was right… and both times it went really fast.
So on July 2, 2015, I woke up, felt the contractions, and told Dave “cancel your meeting for today, we’re having a baby!”
Except then the contractions stopped… completely!
The next day, I woke up to contractions again… but then they stopped again.
This went on EVERY SINGLE DAY from July 2 through July 13 (the day before he was born). So, as you can imagine, when I woke up to more contractions on July 13, I didn’t even think anything of it.
However, right around dinner time on July 13, the contractions picked up again — and they didn’t stop.
We took the kids to a local park after dinner, and I kept thinking “hmmm, another contraction… and another one”. I didn’t say anything to Dave because I didn’t want to get his hopes up, and I honestly was sure they would stop again at some point.
We came home around 7:30, gave the kids their baths and snacks and got them into bed by 8:30pm.
At that point, I finally told Dave that I thought my contractions were the “real deal” and we called my sister who lives down the road to tell her she needed to stay at our house that night so we could go into the hospital.
Then, I frantically did a couple loads of laundry, cleaned out the dishwasher, washed Simon’s bottles, packed some snacks for the hospital, showered, etc. while Dave got stuff ready for my sister and for the kids the next day.
We left for the hospital right around 11:00pm and by the time we got to triage (11:20pm) I was already dilated to a 6!
They quickly called my doctor and moved me to the labor and delivery room at exactly 12:00 midnight.
After about an hour of breathing through painful contractions (he was “face up”) and 3 big pushes, James made his appearance at 1:10am, July 14, 2015.
After that, everything went really smoothly and felt very similar to when the other 2 kids were born.
I got to my recovery room (a big corner room!) around 3:15am and Dave was home, in bed by 4:00am. He was there to tell our kids the good news when they woke up… and they never even knew we were gone!
Our parents and siblings visited us in the hospital later that day… but for the next 36 hours, I simply rested and relaxed in my hospital room. I ordered room service, watched HGTV, and snuggled with James until we came home Wednesday night.
It was about as nice as a hospital stay could be!
And how fun to be welcomed home by Nora’s surprise party 🙂
Our family photos were taken 4 days later…
{These cute shirts are from the Heart of Life Handmade etsy shop}
Here’s James at 1 week old
2 weeks old
3 weeks old
As I’m sure you can imagine, I’m thoroughly enjoying the time with Dave home… and sort of dreading the start of the school year in just a few more weeks.
I’m definitely not feeling confident in my abilities to wrangle all 3 kids all day long all by myself… so fortunately, we have lots of family who live close by and will (hopefully) be willing to help out!
However, for now, I will continue to soak up the time at home with my whole family, and take as many naps as I can while Dave is here to help out!
Cheers to finding our new normal as a family of 5!
Elena says
What a beautiful birth story! Welcome James 🙂 I love your family pictures. I can’t believe you’re now a family of 5! I’ve been with you since before Nora was born. Where has the time gone? I’m so happy for you and your beautiful family. Congratulations to the entire Dekker family!!!
Andrea says
Thanks Elena!
The Busy Brunette says
CONGRATS TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY! He is perfect and you look great. Can’t wait to hear about life as a family of 5!
The Busy Brunette
http://thebusybrunette.blogspot.com
Teresa says
Oh the pictures are too sweet! Baby James looks like he fits right in with big sis and brother. Thank you for sharing your birth story. It sounds like that “face up” was painful . Congratulations!
JoAnn C. says
Thanks, Andrea, for sharing your story and beautiful family pictures. Nora looks so proud to be a big sister. And Simon’s smile,oh my…the very definition of cuteness.
Happy weekend to you and your lovely family.
Fenton says
Congratulations! I love all the pictures! Rest is a good plan of action. 🙂
Adri says
Everyone took my comments! He’s adorable, you look terrific and been there, done that with hubby leaving for work while finding a new normal! You will do great, I have no doubt…one moment at a time.
Lana Schaeffer says
Congratulations!! He is beautiful just like your other two.
Deborah Walker says
Dear Andrea,
Congratulations on another beautiful addition to the family, James. He is adorable and your family pictures are so joyful and full of love. I am happy for all of you, and on top of it your a great blogger! Tall order to run a home as you do with three little ones! Best to all of you.
Stay well,
Deb
Jenny C. says
I love this “story” and the “illustrations” are superb 😉 Thanks for sharing!!!
Rebecca says
Could you guys be any cuter?! What a lovely story and I’m so glad it went relatively easy for you. What a blessing to have your hubbie home with you through these first few weeks! Enjoy your time together and I’ll be praying the start of his school year goes smoothly. But if it doesn’t, just post your troubles on fb and we will “support” you and tell you stories at will make you feel better!!
And really, you two make lovely children!
Candis says
Congrats my friend on your beautiful, healthy baby boy. 🙂
Elizabeth Dilts says
Beautiful mother and family! My favorite part is Dave going home to be with the kids! My husband laughed and refused when I told him to leave me at the hospital and go home with the other two kids! He always stays the entire time with me. Hey, he is a great man and I love him for it, but sometimes it is nice to just have quiet baby time. maybe next time!
Kristen @ Joyfully Thriving says
Congratulations, Andrea! I’m glad your waiting is over, as you settle into life with 3 little ones. You’ll do great! Enjoy the final weeks with Dave at home, and yes, give thanks for family close by. What a blessing!
JJ says
Congratulations! What a beautiful family! =) Love the shirts, too!
Leah says
Thank goodness you had all those early contractions! I had my first face-up and it extended my labor quite a bit. Glad it was so fast for you. We welcomed #3 in March and WOW! what a change its been. Definitely an adjustment!.
Michelle Bonk says
What s beautiful story … and documented so lovingly so the details will always be remembered.
You look wonderful and the photos are beautiful.
I feel your apprehension of being home with three … I remember that feeling. (My third has Down syndrome so that was an added stressor) but my older two were 2.5 and 4 so that was a bit easier). By number four it was a breeze lol.
Looking forward to watching your beautiful family grow.
PS: love your name choices … I have a Jamieson and Simone (both daughters)
ShellyL says
Congratulations! What a beautiful family and welcome to the “mom-of-three” club. I have to say, I’m a little bit in awe that you had family pics taken four days after giving birth. You had the energy to fix yourself up, pick outfits for everyone, coordinate pics, and even put Nora’s hair in that adorable little style. Kudos to you! 🙂
MamaToo says
When I had three children through foster care between 8.5 months and 28 months, it helped me to observe and then remember that the truly overwhelming moments generally don’t last more than about 15 minutes, and most of them are only about 5 minutes. If you can just keep breathing and stay calm and do the next thing, those overwhelmed moments generally pass pretty quickly.
Pixie508 says
Ummm… that pic of you right after giving birth – you look like it was no big deal! Not fair!! LOL
Congrats, he’s adorable!
Jane says
Congratulations! He’s beautiful! You have a lovely family!
Mrs. Crackin' the Whip says
I absolutely love hearing the birth stories. Such beautiful pictures too. With our youngest child I refused to go to the hospital too soon. We went for a walk, picked up lunch, and puttered around the house. Mr. Crackin’ was not amused by my antics. It was a very tense drive to the hospital, to say the least. Baby Crackin’ made his entry into the world in the next 2 hours!
elizabeth says
I completely agree with your nervousness of handing all three by yourself all day long. My first week of us four all by myself I felt the same way, especially after having my second c-section. The thoughts of just trying to feed/bathe the older two boys (3 and 2) and keep baby girl nursing and sleeping at night was a lot of work for my recovering self. My husband travels a lot for work, so when baby girl was 6 weeks old he had to leave for a week and I asked my husband’s aunt is she would mind coming then to visit (we had no other family offer to visit or help and have no friends in the area). Every week for that whole month my husband would leave on Monday and sometimes not return until Friday. Each week had it challenges, but we all survived. =) After a few more weeks like that I realized the life savers are cooking meals for me and freezing them in advanced, grocery shopping before my husband leaves for the week, trying to have one “new” exciting activity for my older boys to do while I took a shower/put the baby down.
elizabeth says
You’re a very organized mom and will be handling the three of them with ease in no time. Doesn’t mean there isn’t chaos, just that you realized there will be moments that make you take some deep breaths and laugh before you take on the situation.
Jacquie says
Congratulations! He is beautiful. Thank you for sharing the story with us!
Kellie says
Congratulations Dekker Family! James is such a handsome baby and you all take the best family photos!
Andrea says
haha — well, we take A LOT of photos, so we can almost always find at least 1 good one 🙂
Leanne says
such a beautiful post, Andrea! you are gorgeous by the way! so happy for your #3! you are amazing! I found #3 went with the “flow” much more easily… but, he RELISHES his position as the “baby”….
congratulations!!!
Erin says
“Then, I frantically did a couple loads of laundry, cleaned out the dishwasher, washed Simon’s bottles, packed some snacks for the hospital, showered, etc.”
Sounds just like me with my first! I wanted to make sure I was coming home to a clean house and baby girl was 11 days early! Reading this made me laugh and it is nice to know that I am not the only one who does this!
Yvonne says
Thanks for sharing! Love reading about your beautiful family and congrats on baby #3! He is beautiful!
Andrea says
Thanks Yvonne! We think he’s pretty cute too 🙂
Debbie says
Oh my word! That’s probably the smoothest delivery story I’ve ever heard! I can’t even believe you’ve only had one contraction with Nora and Simon but also that you did laundry and cleaned the kitchen during the contraction with James. It really sounds like you had a relaxing time at the hospital after the delivery. If only all pregnancies could be like this. The pictures are all great!
Andrea says
Debbie, I had MANY more than 1 contraction with all 3 of my kids — I just never had any “real” contractions with Nora or Simon prior to the day they were born. With James, I had real contractions every day for almost 2 weeks before he was born 🙂
That said, I will say that in general, I have relatively smooth labors and deliveries — so you won’t hear any complaining from me!
Michele says
What a beautiful family you have! James is so sweet, and your pictures are darling. I can practically smell that wonderful new baby scent from here! Congratulations (and lots of sleep I hope) to all of you!
Andrea says
haha — thanks Michele! James does smell pretty good (most of the time)!
Paulette says
Beautiful family!! My husband laughs at me…I talk about you and your family as if we’re friends. So happy for you and yours. 😉
Andrea says
totally understandable Paulette. I talk about many of my “online friends” like we’ve known each other forever — but in reality, we’ve never even met!
Sheila says
Congratulations on baby #3! I also have three children and just sent my baby #3 out the door for the first day of his senior year of high school! Time flies, enjoy!!